When COVID hit in 2020, things completely changed for Jim Putnam and Kerianne Hanson. Their Malaysian CrossFit gym, CrossFit Lah in Kuala Lampur, experienced some of the most restrictive shutdowns in the world. This ultimately forced Putnam and Hanson to return to the United States. With the help of PushPress, they were able to successfully pursue absentee ownership, among other things.
How It Started.
Putnam and Hanson left the United States for Malaysia in 2016 and “didn’t necessarily plan on leaving,” Putnam said.
But in 2021, the Malaysian government shut gyms down again in 2021 “for the fifth time, with no end in sight” Hanson explained. They had a baby on the way, and decided it was time to jump ship.
The couple returned to the United States, this time to Florida. They began coaching with CrossFit HSN, learning from popular nutrition coach Nicole Aucoin. During this time, they handed the controls to their coaches in Malaysia, who have kept CrossFit Lah running.
How PushPress Is Helping.
Putnam credits PushPress in a big way for making his life easier for the last two years.
He says the PushPress software has allowed their gym to continue running effectively without them present. In addition, he believed so strongly in the product that Putnam joined the PushPress team as a Train Account Executive.
“We use PushPress for everything, and between the two of us we split some of the other tasks. I handle a lot of the admin still and plan our lead member journey,” Putnam said. But generally speaking, the gym’s day-to-day tasks are taken care of by their team of coaches on the ground.
“We still have a very large finger on the pulse, but we have removed ourselves as coaches,” Hanson said. He commented that something like this would have never been possible without effective software like PushPress.
Putnam explained, “The simplicity of the PushPress system just kind of works. The intuitiveness means the coaches have no problem running with things.”
How It Happens.
There are a variety of PushPress tools that have helped Hanson and Putnam continue to manage their gym from afar. First, they use the PushPress Train app for workout tracking. Second, they most recently started using the Social Feed feature on the members’ app. This acts like private Facebook groups did in the past, giving them insight as to what’s happening in the community.
PushPress’ store kiosk is another tool they utilize. It helps them to sell merchandise to members without burdening coaches.
“That one’s great because we don’t have to think about it. Plug and play, and it auto-closes invoices,” Putnam said. He adding that his sales have increased with zero effort for them since using the tool.
Further, Hanson and Putnam use PushPress’ Landing Pages. This allows new members to make quick, easy changes to their fundamentals program, for example. Most recently, they decided to try offering two free classes to prospects. They seamlessly made the change on the landing pages from thousands of miles away.
How PushPress Grow Is A Game-Changer.
Hanson also credits PushPress Grow with helping them rebuild their gym from afar after the pandemic. Grow is an all-in-one platform that allows gym owners to create marketing campaigns in time-saving ways. Clients can connect with leads, convert them into clients and improve client retention.
“It comes in very very handy, especially because we’re not there,” Hanson said. She loves that Grow links up with social media and email, and believes this makes it even more effective. In addition, she said it’s easy to keep track of communication happening between coaches and prospective clients.
This means she’s able to go into Grow every morning and make sure people have been followed up with. When leads are being pushed through the funnel appropriately, she doesn’t need to be “in constant dialogue,” pestering her coaches.
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Putnam added, “We have everything set up to automate as much as possible, and then we have the customer success manager there that gets tasks with the local follow ups.”
Finally, Putnam credits being a PushPress Account Executive for giving him a bit more stability in his life.
“Full disclosure: When we came back from Malaysia we had no idea what we were going to do with our lives. It was super stressful. And then came back, had a baby on the way and wanted to find something more stable and found that with PushPress. And I have enjoyed it far more than I thought I would,” Putnam said.
“They make you want to be part of it, they make you want to build things that help gym owners,” he added.
How It’s Going.
The last couple years have helped Putnam and Hanson realize they kind of enjoy the nomadic lifestyle. And that technology like PushPress has allowed them to do just that.
Their next stop with their young baby is New Zealand. After that, they’re planning a trip to Australia for a bit. Then finally, a trip back to Malaysia to visit their gym for a few months in 2023.
“Our plan is full nomads. And the gym in Malaysia will continue how we have been doing it,” Putnam said.
It’s not the life everyone seeks, they said, but it’s the life they’re excited about. And it’s a life that wouldn’t be possible without PushPress in their corner.
